By CHRIS GRYGIEL, SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

Published 10:00 pm, Sunday, August 2, 2009

The City Council passed two measures Monday designed to protect trees in Seattle, a goal members said is not in conflict with plans to increase the number of people and buildings in the Emerald City as well.

Environmentalists and the city's business community supported the efforts, though some tree proponents worried developers still have too much influence.

The resolution would seek to:

Establish the requirement to obtain a permit to remove any tree in any residential, commercial or industrial zone.

Provide incentives to retain existing trees and plant new trees, to include relief from land use code development standards such as height limits, setbacks, lot coverage, density, floor area ratio and minimum parking requirements.

Identify incentives to encourage owners of existing homes and buildings to retain and maintain trees.

Establish a system of fines related to tree removal without a permit, in violation of regulations.

"Our urban trees are an incredibly valuable resource," said City Council President Richard Conlin. "We need to take some action if we want to keep them."

The city also wants to increase density. That's not a goal that's at odds with protecting and adding to the urban tree canopy, Conlin said. More trees make a city more desirable for development and livability, he said.

Councilwoman Jan Drago, an early backer of tree protection, said she hoped the city would be sensible going forward and not hold up development for any arbor.

"Not all trees are created equal," said Drago, who is running for mayor. "I certainly hope that we don't develop an onerous process. We have a way of making things more and more difficult and bureaucratic. I am concerned about that."

Some urban arbor proponents said they reluctantly signed off on the resolution. Duff Badgley, who represents a tree protection group, said there's a clause in the measure about prohibiting tree removal during construction that greatly concerns him. It reads "...(the Department of Planning and Development) may permit exceptions to this prohibition when evidence is presented that development of the site would be substantially precluded or prohibited or when documentation is provided by a licenses or accredited professional that the health of the tree would be ignorantly undermined as a result of construction."

Badgley has said DPD is too quick to side with developers.

Alex Fryer, spokesman for Mayor Greg Nickels, said "we're pleased that Seattle's tree canopy is growing, and we look forward to working with this new Urban Forestry Commission to develop a science-based strategy to reach our goal of 30 percent canopy cover by 2037."